Invested Canadian

Mortgage Calculator for Canadians

Work out your monthly mortgage payment, or how much home you can afford, with the Canadian details built in: semi-annual compounding, CMHC insurance, and the stress test. Free, no signup, and your numbers stay in the link.

Build your estimate
Adjust the numbers below. Your result and chart update as you type.
What do you want to know?
The home
$
$

20% down. Minimum here is $40,000.

The mortgage
% / year

Your fixed contract rate. Canadian fixed mortgages compound semi-annually.

years

How long to pay off the whole mortgage, 1 to 30 years. 30-year insured mortgages need a first-time buyer or new build.

years

How long your rate is locked before you renew, usually 5 years. Shorter than the amortization.

Payment frequency

These values are saved in this page's URL so the estimate is shareable. Avoid sharing the link if the amounts are private.

Your mortgage payment

$2,995/ month

On a $520,000 mortgage over 25 years, paid off in about 25 years at this frequency.

Over your 5-year term

Owing at renewal: $459,512

Paid
$179,689
To principal
$60,488
To interest
$119,201

Over your full 25-year amortization

Total interest
$378,444
Total paid
$898,444

principal plus interest

Loan amount
$520,000

Canadian semi-annual compounding, in today's dollars. Excludes property tax, home insurance, closing costs, and any provincial sales tax on the CMHC premium.

Your mortgage over time
Your position
Balance paid down over 25 years, with your 5-year term marked.
Amortization schedule
What you pay each year, and the balance left. Your term ends in year 5.
YearPaymentPrincipalInterestBalance
1$35,938$10,955$24,982$509,045
2$35,938$11,499$24,439$497,546
3$35,938$12,069$23,869$485,476
4$35,938$12,668$23,270$472,809
5$35,938$13,296$22,642$459,512
6$35,938$13,956$21,982$445,557
7$35,938$14,648$21,290$430,909
8$35,938$15,374$20,563$415,535
9$35,938$16,137$19,801$399,398
10$35,938$16,937$19,000$382,460
11$35,938$17,777$18,160$364,683
12$35,938$18,659$17,279$346,023
13$35,938$19,585$16,353$326,439
14$35,938$20,556$15,382$305,883
15$35,938$21,576$14,362$284,307
16$35,938$22,646$13,292$261,661
17$35,938$23,769$12,169$237,892
18$35,938$24,948$10,990$212,944
19$35,938$26,186$9,752$186,758
20$35,938$27,484$8,453$159,274
21$35,938$28,848$7,090$130,426
22$35,938$30,278$5,659$100,148
23$35,938$31,780$4,158$68,368
24$35,938$33,357$2,581$35,011
25$35,938$35,011$927$0

How Canadian mortgage interest works

Canadian fixed-rate mortgages are legally required to compound semi-annually, not monthly. A US calculator divides the annual rate by 12; a correct Canadian one converts it with (1 + rate/2) raised to the right power first. The effect is small but real: your true monthly rate, and therefore your payment, is a little lower than the naive monthly-compounding number. This calculator uses the Canadian convention, so the payment lines up with what a lender quotes.

CMHC insurance and your minimum down payment

In Canada you can buy with as little as 5% down on the first $500,000 and 10% on the portion above that, up to an insured price cap of $1.5M. Any down payment under 20% requires mortgage default insurance. The premium (4.0%, 3.1%, or 2.8% of the loan depending on how much you put down) is added to your mortgage, so the calculator folds it into the loan automatically. At $1.5M or more you need at least 20% down and a conventional, uninsured mortgage.

The stress test and how much you can afford

Lenders qualify you at the greater of your rate plus 2% or 5.25%, and check two ratios: your housing costs should be no more than 39% of gross income (GDS), and all your debts no more than 44% (TDS). The affordability mode solves for the highest home price that keeps you inside both limits at that qualifying rate, and tells you which one is holding you back.

Paying off faster with accelerated payments

Switching from monthly to accelerated bi-weekly pays half your monthly amount every two weeks. Over a year that is 13 monthly payments' worth instead of 12, and that one extra payment shortens a 25-year amortization by roughly three to four years while cutting your total interest. Try the frequency toggle to see it.

Term versus amortization and renewal

Your amortization is how long the whole mortgage takes to pay off (often 25 years). Your term is how long your current rate is locked, usually 5 years, after which you renew at a new rate. That is why this calculator also shows the balance you will still owe when your term ends, since that is the amount you renew.

Frequently asked questions

What will my mortgage payment be?
Enter the home price, down payment, interest rate, amortization, and payment frequency, and the calculator gives your payment plus the total interest and payoff time. It uses Canadian semi-annual compounding, so the numbers match what a Canadian lender would quote.
How much mortgage can I afford?
Switch to 'What can I afford?' and enter your gross income, monthly debts, and down payment. The calculator finds the highest home price that keeps you within the standard Canadian limits (GDS 39% and TDS 44%) while qualifying at the mortgage stress-test rate.
How does Canadian mortgage interest work?
By law, Canadian fixed-rate mortgages compound semi-annually, not monthly like US mortgages. That means a quoted 5% rate is converted to a slightly lower effective monthly rate, so Canadian payments are a touch lower than a US calculator would show for the same rate. This tool does that conversion.
What is CMHC insurance and when do I pay it?
If your down payment is under 20%, you need mortgage default insurance (from CMHC or a private insurer). The premium is a percentage of the loan (4.0%, 3.1%, or 2.8% depending on your down payment, plus 0.2% for a 30-year amortization) and is added to your mortgage rather than paid upfront. In some provinces the provincial sales tax on the premium is paid at closing.
What is the mortgage stress test?
To qualify, lenders test whether you could still afford payments at a higher rate: the greater of your contract rate plus 2%, or 5.25%. The affordability mode uses this qualifying rate, while your actual payment uses your real contract rate.
How do accelerated bi-weekly payments help?
An accelerated bi-weekly payment is half your monthly payment, paid every two weeks. Because there are 26 bi-weekly periods a year, you end up making the equivalent of 13 monthly payments instead of 12. That one extra payment a year shortens a 25-year amortization by roughly three to four years and saves a lot of interest.
What are the $1.5M cap and 30-year amortization rules?
As of December 2024, homes priced under $1.5M can be bought with an insured mortgage (less than 20% down), up from the old $1M limit. Insured 30-year amortizations are now allowed for first-time buyers or newly built homes. At $1.5M or more you need at least 20% down and a conventional, uninsured mortgage.

Keep going

A home is usually the biggest part of your net worth: add yours up with the net worth calculator, or plan the rest of your money with the retirement savings calculator. You can also see how you compare on the Invested Canadian dashboard.